In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II (episode)
In the mirror universe, an assault team led by Archer steal the 23rd Century starship Defiant from a Tholian dock and use it to seize power. (Part 2 of 2) Summary Teaser On the bridge of the [[USS Defiant (NCC-1764)|USS Defiant]], having just witnessed the destruction of the [[ISS Enterprise (NX-01)|ISS Enterprise]] by the Tholians, Commander Archer orders Chief Engineer Tucker to get the Defiant underway. Tucker reports that the ship's thrusters are online, but T'Pol adds she is unable to release the docking clamps that hold Defiant in the Tholian dock. Archer then pressures Tucker to get the Defiant's weapons online. At the navigator's station, Major Reed reports that shields are online, and Archer orders them raised. The shields are able to weaken the docking clamps, but not enough to release the ship. Manning the helm station, Archer alternates the ship's port and starboard thrusters, which shakes the Defiant free from the docking clamps. As Archer begins to maneuver the Defiant out of the dock, T'Pol informs him that six Tholian vessels are approaching the starship. Archer again pressures Tucker to bring weapons online, but the engineer reports that he is not sure if he can do so, as the power couplings needed to activate the weapons have been removed. Before Archer can reply, Corporal Mayweather directs Archer's attention to the main viewscreen in time for him to see the Tholian ships creating an energy net over the opening of the dock, effectively preventing the Defiant's escape. Act One As Tucker continues working to get the ship's tactical systems online, Reed reports that more Tholian ships are approaching. Commander Tucker notifies the captain that the weapons systems will be ready in a few more seconds, shortly before the bridge suddenly shudders. Reed explains that the Tholian station has locked on a tractor beam and is dragging the Defiant back into the dock. With T'Pol's assistance, Tucker manages to bring the ship's tactical systems online. Using the vessel's phaser banks, they destroy the tractor beam emitter and the energy web that was blocking them from leaving the dock. Archer and Reed smile as the Tholian ships retreat. However, as the Defiant exits the dock, the Tholian station fires at the ship. The Defiant retaliates by launching several aft torpedoes at the meteor-based station, attacking the dock until the vessel is out of range. Reed then informs Archer that scanners have detected several life pods, all belonging to the destroyed Enterprise. Archer has the pods brought aboard. As the Defiant travels on impulse power, Archer confers with his officers in the ship's briefing room, where he demands that Tucker repair the ship's warp drive. The commander informs him that engineering was heavily stripped, and even though most of the missing components are still in the hangar deck, Tucker would need a few days to figure out how to put them back together. Archer responds that if the ship does not have warp power within twelve hours, he'll recruit a new chief engineer. T'Pol then advises that they make use of the alien slave workers aboard the Defiant, as their intricate knowledge of the systems aboard the vessel may help to quicken repairs. Archer approves of T'Pol's idea, telling Reed to keep the workers under close surveillance. The captain reveals he intends to rendezvous with the assault fleet fighting the rebellion against the Terran Empire as soon as warp capability is restored. T'Pol protests, believing the ship is in no condition for battle, especially since there are only 47 officers currently aboard, although the Defiant was designed to be operated by a crew of 400. The Vulcan suggests that Archer take the Defiant back to Earth for study, but the captain interjects, stating that the Terran Empire could lose the war against the rebels within weeks if the Defiant and its advanced weaponry are not brought to the front lines immediately. He then dismisses everyone in the room, with the exception of T'Pol and Mayweather, who has become his personal guard. Once the others have left, Archer takes a phase rifle from Mayweather. Threatening T'Pol with the weapon, the captain warns that he is considering killing her for betraying him earlier. T'Pol desperately pleads that the Starfleet orders giving Archer command of Enterprise were obviously fabricated and that, as a Starfleet officer, it was her duty to help Captain Forrest regain command of his ship. She reveals to Archer that, prior to transporting aboard the Defiant, Forrest had ordered her to kill Archer. However, because Forrest was killed aboard the Enterprise, his orders are no longer valid, and she is now willing to accept Archer as her commanding officer. Archer then claims that he never had any problem with Vulcans until they joined the rebellion, and that he would kill her now if he didn't need her skills to get the Defiant operational again. He then begins to forewarn T'Pol of the consequences if he suspects that she may betray him again, but the Vulcan interrupts, stating that she understands, and Archer dismisses her. Later, Hoshi Sato - the Captain's woman - arrives at the Captain's quarters, where she finds Archer wearing a 23rd century captain's wraparound tunic, which he found in the Captain's wardrobe. Hoshi is unimpressed, stating that the people of the alternate universe have strange concepts for uniforms. Archer tells Hoshi that he can find no mention of the Terran Empire in the Defiant's computer banks. He notes that many of the names from the parallel universe are the same, but history is drastically different. In the other universe, rather than forming an Empire, Earth became a part of an interspecies alliance known as the United Federation of Planets. When Hoshi asks if she and the captain existed in the other universe, Archer cues up her counterpart's profile. As Archer reads the data in the profile, Hoshi grows increasingly uncomfortable with the unremarkable details. She tells the computer to bring up the profile on Archer's counterpart. She is amused to find that the other Archer was not only given command of that universe's Enterprise, but he was also a noted explorer and diplomat. The captain argues that his counterpart was not a great man and believes he sold out Earth's future to "a group of sub-Human species." Archer remarks that great men are not peace-makers, they are conquerors. Hoshi encourages him not to worry about his counterpart's future, as this Archer's future is only just beginning. She tells him that when he returns to Terran space with the Defiant, he will be declared a hero of the Empire. She claims that Starfleet Command will have no choice but to give Archer a ship of his own, but the captain replies that he already has his own command - the Defiant. In the ship's engineering section, Tucker arrives at a warp junction, after he was summoned there by Ensign Kelby. Kelby notifies the chief engineer that the two plasma regulators needed for the ship to achieve warp are missing, but that they were in place only ten minutes prior, meaning someone must have removed them in that time. Tucker threatens Kelby to find the regulators, or he will be made responsible for the Defiant's inability to go to warp. Tucker then leaves Kelby to his work. A moment later, Kelby hears rattling in the crawlway above and climbs up to investigate. He finds one of the plasma regulators lying on the floor of the crawlway. When he goes to retrieve it, however, he is pulled headfirst into the Jefferies tube above him. On the bridge, Doctor Phlox later informs Archer he has determined that a large reptillian creature killed Ensign Kelby, as traces of reptillian saliva were found in the ensign's wounds. T'Pol states that the ship's internal sensors indicate that the creature is not present in the primary hull, but notes that the sensors in the engineering hull are still offline. Tucker arrives to tell Archer the plasma regulators cannot be found. Without them, the engineer is unable to initialize the reaction chamber that activates the ship's warp drive. T'Pol notes that whoever sabotaged the ship must have had knowledge of the ship's systems. Archer turns to Reed and orders the major to bring one of the alien slave workers to the briefing room for interrogation. Later, one of the alien workers is bound to a chair in the briefing room as Mayweather punches him. The alien cries in pain that the reptilian creature told the workers it would kill them if they revealed any information about the creature. However, Archer responds that the alien will die now if he refuses to talk. The worker continues to beg, so Archer tells Mayweather to stand aside before pulling out a hand phaser and adjusting the weapon's settings. Using an intercom, T'Pol contacts Reed and tells him to bring in another worker. Archer tells the alien he has heard that the newly-discovered phaser weapons can cause matter to disintigrate, and that he has been wanting to test it. He then points the phaser at the worker's head. Consequently, the worker reveals that the reptillian creature is his slave master, named Slar. The alien tells Archer that the creature is hiding in the ship's crawlways, most likely in an area where conditions are most warm, as the creature's species prefers hot temperatures. When pressed to reveal the name of the creature's species, the worker informs the captain that Slar is a Gorn, a reptillian race Archer has encountered before. Act Two Later, Reed shows Captain Archer an internal schematic of the Defiant on the starship's bridge. The major reports that a team of officers cornered the Gorn in turboshaft three. However, when Slar escaped through an access tube, Reed lost communication with McKenzie and Browne. Archer thinks he hears a voice from the command chair - his counterpart in the parallel universe that the Defiant came from. However, the captain is simply hallucinating that the second Archer is on the bridge. Archer's duplicate, an embodiment of the real Archer's self doubt, comments that the real captain is taking too long. Reed continues indistinctly as the hullucination boasts that he took care of his own crew himself when they were in jeopardy, instead of expecting security officers to handle the situation. Listening to the fantasy character, Archer shouts at Reed that a team of Tellarites could find the Gorn faster than the major's officers. Archer also orders Reed to form an assault team that the captain will lead. At her station, Hoshi Sato recieves a transmission from inside the Defiant that she suspects is being sent by the Gorn. Although Ensign Sato is unable to locate the reptillian, Archer informs her that he is willing to talk with Slar. After a brief moment, Hoshi remarks that the translation matrix is online, allowing Archer and the Gorn to understand each other. The captain demands that the creature returns the plasma regulators that it stole. With hissing, raspy snarls, Slar's translated voice indicates that the Gorn is desperate to leave the ship. Archer offers to discuss the reptillian's predicament if Slar returns the regulators, but the Gorn refuses the possibility of a compromise. Slar reveals that he is familiar with Humans, but he does not trust them. The reptillian orders Archer to give him a shuttlecraft, stating that he will disclose the location of the vital components once he has escaped the Defiant. However, Archer shouts that he will not negotiate with the Gorn and insists that Slar immediately returns the regulators. The captain begins to threaten the creature, but is interrupted when the reptillian abruptly ends their conversation by closing the channel. Archer angrily turns to Reed at the navigator's station and reminds the major to arrange an assault team consisting of the best security officers aboard. Reed promptly leaves his position and heads for a turbolift at the rear of the bridge. T'Pol approaches Archer and comments that Slar's proposition seems fair, but the captain suspects that the creature's offer is not genuine. Archer fears that, if Slar was given the shuttlecraft he has asked for, the creature would contact the Gorn Hegemony and accompany a warship back to the Defiant. As the captain heads for the turbolift, he states he also believes that the Gorn does not intend to return the plasma regulators that the Defiant needs to go to warp. With only impulse velocity available, the starship would be easily damaged, or even destroyed. Before T'Pol can respond, Archer steps into the turbolift and the doors close behind him. Inside the turbolift, the captain's hallucinatory double reappears. The fantasy character whispers to the real Archer that he will be finally rewarded with the honor he deserves if he manages to defeat Slar. Later, three MACOs follow Archer and Reed through a corridor, up a ladder and into a crawlway. When they reach the crawlway, Reed detects an extremely faint biosign. Believing it is an indication of Slar's presence, Archer devises a strategy to corner the Gorn. Reed takes two of the MACOs with him, and separates from Archer. Reed's team approach the creature's position, but find only a communicator that has been rigged to emit a biosign. The major contacts Archer and informs the captain of their dicovery. Archer instructs Reed to rendezvous with him and the remaining MACO and then ends their discussion. Reed orders one of the MACOs in his team to deactivate the communicator when he hears a beeping sound from overhead. Realizing that Slar has set a trap, the major begins to run further down the corridor, but the explosion throws him to the ground. The blast also shakes the bulkheads where Archer is situated. The captain soon arrives at the scene of the explosion, where Reed apologizes for his failure and loses consciousness. Using his communicator, Archer hails the bridge and asks T'Pol where the Gorn is hiding. As the captain rolls Major Reed's body over to face upwards, the Vulcan reports that Slar has moved to a location on deck nine of the primary hull, the saucer section of the ship. Archer tells her to access the environmental controls on deck nine and wait for his to signal. T'Pol acknowledges the captain's order and Archer replaces his communicator on the belt around his waist. On his way out of the wreckage caused by the Gorn's detonation device, Archer passes one of the MACOs who died alongside Reed when the bomb exploded. Soon, Archer climbs down a ladder to deck nine while the MACO with him searches the area for possible traps. As the captain leads the MACO down the corridor, they pass a dead member of the Defiant's crew. From overheard, Slar watches while Archer and the MACO continue through the corridor. More dead crew members lie in a seperate section of the corridor, where broken cables hang from above. After the MACO and Archer steathily creep past a sign that points the way to the briefing room, the captain walks directly beneath the Gorn. Archer turns round to face the opposite direction. When he sees nothing there, he turns back to the MACO and nods. The MACO responds to the gesture by continuing through the corridor. Relieved, Archer begins to follow the MACO but Slar's ambush comes quickly, when the Gorn suddenly leaps from the ceiling. Although the captain is armed with a phaser, he drops it in the unexpected attack. As Archer battles with the creature on the Defiant's floor, the MACO punches Slar from behind. The Gorn furiously rips at the captain's leg, tearing a gash in Archer's flesh. Injured by Slar's blow, the captain rolls in agony, unable to defend himself. Seeing Archer in jeopardy, the MACO continues his attack. The creature roars with each of the MACO's impacts, but soon manages to overpower its attacker. Archer watches as the Gorn violently batters the MACO, hammering the officer against a bulkhead. When Slar drops the MACO to the ground and turns his attention towards Archer, the captain desperately contacts T'Pol while hauling himself away from the Gorn. As the creature follows Archer, the captain passes a sign on the floor positioned between two sections of the corridor. The captain reads the section of the deck from the sign to T'Pol and gives her an indication to put their plan into action. Archer pulls himself past the sign shortly before T'Pol increases the artificial gravity in the section of corridor where Slar is. Archer's plan is successful and Slar is dragged down by the force of the gravity plating. After the captain gets to his feet, two armed MACOs enter from a turbolift in his section. Using one of the MACOs' weapons, Archer immediately shoots Slar six times. :'' Defiant Starlog, January 18, 2155. We've recovered the missing engine components and I've ordered a course to rendezvous with the assault fleet.'' Next to a game of three-dimensional chess, T'Pol and Doctor Phlox discuss Major Reed while they eat at a separate table. When the Vulcan asks about Reed's condition, Phlox is unsure whether the major will survive his injuries. However, the doctor is amused by the fact that there are probably a number of people aboard who would discreetly celebrate Reed's death. T'Pol switches the topic of their conversation when she comments that Phlox has frequently been using the ship's library database. The doctor explains that he was using the ship's computer to research classical literature of the Defiant's universe and compare it with his own. He discovered that the stories were similar, but the characters in the classics of the parallel universe showed weakness and compassion. Phlox notes that one exception was William Shakespeare's plays, which were equally "grim" in both universes. While Phlox takes a drink of his beverage, T'Pol advises the doctor to examine the historical files of the other universe. T'Pol is interested that Humans, Vulcans and Denobulans are considered equals in the parallel universe. When Phlox only replies with a murmur before taking another drink, T'Pol thinks that the doctor does not find her statements fascinating. Setting his glass down firmly on their table, Phlox tells T'Pol that he is scared the ship's historical files may lead the crew to adopt the ideals of the other universe. T'Pol begins to answer the doctor, but she is interrupted when Captain Archer's voice orders the crew to battle stations. Meanwhile, the NX class starship [[ISS Avenger|ISS Avenger]] rushes through a debris field, pursued by four hostile alien vessels - a Tellarite craft, two ''Kumari''-class Andorian ships and a ''D'Kyr''-type Vulcan cruiser. On the damaged wreckage that was once Avenger's bridge, the ship's captain sits in the command chair with a piece of shrapnel embedded in his skull. While the bridge continually shudders, Admiral Black checks whether the captain is still alive. When Black confirms that the captain dead, he turns to Lieutenant Commander Soval at the science station and demands a report. According to the Vulcan science officer, a hull breach is imminent on Avenger's B-Deck, although emergency bulkheads are in place and holding. Black shouts the ship's tactical officer to concentrate what little fire-power Avenger still has on the two Andorian ships. However, Soval calls from his station that the starship's hull plating is extremely low. Soval adds that another vessel is approaching their position. When Black asks if the arriving craft is another rebel ship, the science officer seems surprised that the answer is negative. In space, the Defiant destroys one of the Andorian vessels and seriously cripples the other, although the enemy Tellarite craft approaches the Avenger and opens fire. On the Defiant's bridge, Corporal Mayweather reports that the starship's offensive was successful. When the room shudders slightly, Hoshi Sato explains that it was caused by an attack from the Tellarite craft. She adds that the Defiant has not been damaged by the enemy ship. Archer orders Mayweather to lock weapons on the Tellarite vessel's warp reactor and fire when ready. Using the viewer scope at his station, Mayweather complies with Archer's instructions and destroys the Tellarite craft. At the science station, T'Pol notes that the Vulcan cruiser is attempting to leave the battle. When the captain orders Mayweather to pursue the rebel cruiser, T'Pol approaches the command chair and tries to persuade Archer to let the Vulcan ship escape. However, the captain interrupts T'Pol and authorizes Mayweather to open fire. With a deeply saddened expression on her face, the science officer turns her attention to the main viewscreen. Firing a barrage of photon torpedoes, the Defiant completely obliterates the Vulcan cruiser. With a barely concealed look of misery and disgust, T'Pol turns to focus on Hoshi Sato, who comments that the last rebel ship - the remaining Andorian vessel - is retreating from the conflict. Mayweather reports that weapons are locked on the surviving enemy craft, but Archer refuses him permission to fire on the rebel ship, as he believes it will carry news of the defeat back to the other rebels. Archer leans back, sprawled across his command chair, and tells Hoshi to contact Avenger. On the main viewscreen, an image of Admiral Black appears. Upon seeing Archer, the admiral is stunned. The captain moves from his chair and apologizes for the Defiant's lateness. When Black wonders where Enterprise and Admiral Forrest are, the captain responds that it will take a while for him to explain the situation. He also suggests that the admiral may enjoy a tour of the Defiant. While the two Starfleet ships travel alongside each other, Archer, Soval, Mayweather, Admiral Black and his Starfleet Security bodyguard enter the briefing room aboard the Defiant. T'Pol stands at attention and waits inside for the officers to enter. Admiral Black remarks that the Defiant is an impressive ship. When the admiral refers to Archer as a "commander", the captain bristles slightly at hearing his official rank. Soval and T'Pol share a look of recognition as they pass each other. Taking a position in the middle of the room, Admiral Black opines that Starfleet can use the Defiant to successfully crush the rebellion. He reveals that he is planning to recommend Archer for command of his own ship, but the captain reminds Black that he has the authority to grant officers a battlefield promotion. The admiral reacts slightly, shocked at Archer's overconfidence. When Black answers that there are no vessels currently available for Archer to command, the captain attempts to convince Black to officially promote him to commanding officer of the Defiant. The admiral smiles but comments that Fleet Admiral Gardner probably has other plans for the advanced starship. Again, Archer's mind adds the presence of his parallel universe duplicate to the situation. As Black continues talking indistinctly, the imaginary character mocks Archer's attempts to gain command of the Defiant. The captain listens as his counterpart tells him that Starfleet are obviously planning to dissect the starship for study of its advanced systems, while Archer will probably become the commander of an unsophisticated moon shuttle. Archer's expression becomes more stern as his duplicate states that Admiral Black is obviously intending to present the Defiant to the Emperor and take all the credit for the starship himself, while Archer's legacy will be some small historical footnote. Black claims that Humans owe Archer for helping to overpower the rebellion and changing the course of the war. Maintaining that his rank is captain, Archer "relieves" Admiral Black. Suddenly, Mayweather swings a kick at the Starfleet Security bodyguard, knocking him to the deck. Ensuring that Archer stays in command of the Defiant, the captain shoots Black with a phaser, instantly vaporizing the admiral. Act Three Act Four Act Five Background Information *This is the first Star Trek episode Marvin V. Rush has directed in eight years. The last episode he directed was the 1997 Star Trek: Voyager episode "Favorite Son". *Archer, Reed, T'Pol, Tucker, and Mayweather wore TOS-uniforms because they either had to wear the EVA-suits in which they transported, run around naked, or raid the closets of the Defiant. *With this episode, Majel Barrett has been in all five Star Trek series, either as Number One, Nurse Chapel, Lwaxana Troi, the Defiant (NX-74205) and the Voyager's computer, or now the Defiant's Computer. *For the second episode in a row, the show brings back an alien not seen since the original series; in this case the Gorn. Unlike the Original series, the Gorn featured in this episode is computer animated and does not have compound eyes. *According to Archer's bio, he will later serve as Starfleet chief-of-staff and Federation President (2184-2192). Although it did not appear in his bio, Mike Sussman stated that Archer dies in 2245, one day after attending the christening service of the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701), the first Federation starship to bear the name. Two planets were named after Archer, one of them Archer IV. *The story of the mirror universe is continued in "Mirror, Mirror, "Crossover", "Through the Looking Glass", "Shattered Mirror", "Resurrection" and "The Emperor's New Cloak". Memorable Quotes "It may take centuries, but one day humanity will pay for its arrogance." : - T'Pol (mirror) "I'm surprised you're not exhausted from all the beds you've jumped into recently." "Commander Tucker told me I should give you a few pointers in that area." : - T'Pol (mirror), Hoshi Sato (mirror) "You are speaking to '''Empress' Sato."'' : - Hoshi Sato (mirror) Links and References Guest Stars * Gary Graham as Soval (mirror) * Gregory Itzin as Black * Derek Magyar as Kelby (mirror) * John Mahon as Gardner (mirror) * Pat Healy as Alien * Majel Barrett as Defiant computer voice * Mike Sussman as dead crewman References ''Avenger'', ISS; ''Defiant'', HMS; ''Defiant'', USS; Empress; Gorn; Gill, John; master systems display; phaser; plasma regulator; Shakespeare, William; Slar; Tarsus IV; Tholians; Velociraptor; 47. Category:ENT episodes nl:In a Mirror, Darkly, Deel II